


A Reintroduction to Fraternal Dramatics

by The_Fox_Embowed



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Abed has a brother, Drug Addiction, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-11
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-09-16 06:35:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16948854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Fox_Embowed/pseuds/The_Fox_Embowed
Summary: Abed's brother begins attending Greendale Community College after being expelled from his university. He and Abed do not get along.This is a rewrite and continuation of an abandoned work from fanfiction.net - An Introduction to Fraternal Dramatics by alyssa305





	1. Elysium and Tartarus

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [An Introduction to Fraternal Dramatics](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/439593) by alyssa305. 



> This is my first attempt at fanfiction that I find worthy of publishing, so I would like to apologise in advance if my depiction of Annie's point of view is too purple in its prose at first, or if it is too OOC. I have trouble writing her, and identify better with Abed.
> 
> All due credit to alyssa305. This story was her idea, and I am merely rewriting and continuing it because I found the concept interesting and wanted to figure out how it would play out.
> 
> Please comment and/or leave constructive criticism, it is the only way one can improve one's writing.

–Chapter One–

**_Elysium and Tartarus_ **

Annie lay in bed, night after night, torn between two equally impracticable desires. She wanted summer to linger into eternity; she wanted summer to terminate as soon as possible. She wanted to continue in her Elysian existence, wondrously close to Abed, their friendship evolving constantly; she wanted to end her Tartarean existence, agonizingly close to him, yet never able to escalate their relationship into something more–as if she were Tantalus, and he a fruit. She yearned for the distraction school would provide from her childish crush; she yearned for more small moments where she could trick herself into believing that crush just might be requited. She longed for both; she feared both. Of course, she knew that none of these desires were possible. Summer would last a while longer as it was only June, and Abed would never see her in that light. Annie lay in bed, night after night, and let her inner turmoil drain her until Morpheus drew her to blissful sleep.

⁂

Abed knew he needed to leave the apartment, but he could not bring himself to. He needed to be away to work on his film review column for the local newspaper, or he wouldn’t be able to pay rent. But he couldn’t leave, because she was there, and he could never tear himself away. He would never admit it, even to himself, but he liked watching her more than anything, even _Inspector Spacetime_. He liked watching her face, a veritable canvas of emotions. He liked watching her as she read her Jane Austin novels, he’d even begun reading them as well, just to know what made her react as she did. He liked watching her watch her romantic comedies, even though seeing her cry felt like being punched in the chest. But even when he wasn’t watching her–rare though those instances were–her mere presence filled him with a warmth he hadn’t experienced since his mother left. Every time he brushed past her or handed her something, when their skin touched, he felt a tingling in the area which had contacted her, as if his skin were crying out for hers to return. She was a distraction like no other, he had no respite from it, and even if he did, he wouldn’t take it.

Even though he recognized the feelings, he knew–and loathed–that she would never reciprocate them. Their relationship was impossible. Not impossible like Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, but like Jane Austin’s Harriet Smith and Mr. Elton. Impossible because it was so clearly ordained that her affections would inevitably lie with Jeff. The script called for it. Annie was no longer the Phoebe to his Chandler, but the Rachel to his Gunther.

He tried to suppress the feelings. For as long as Abed could remember, he had suppressed all illogical thoughts, and suppressing them made them go away. He had gone over two years without an illogical thought when he met Annie, and they all came flooding back in an instant. He’d been trying to suppress them since and failed every time. He tried again. Deviating from the script could only end in disaster.

Even his dreams held no respite. Even within his perfectly controlled mind, he was teased by his subconscious. This, in conjunction with Troy and Britta’s rather sonorous nighttime activities, meant that he barely rested. He slept less, and the little sleep he had was fitful and inadequate. Somehow, he managed to make it through the summer without collapsing from exhaustion or losing his review column, but it felt as if it were by the skin of his teeth.

⁂

Summer was finally coming to an end, and Annie couldn’t believe she’d made it through. On the last night of the break, the four roommates sat in front of the TV, watching the entire Star Wars trilogy–the _only_ trilogy, the original–with Abed in his chair, Troy and Britta sharing the other, and Annie sitting on the floor between Abed’s knees, organizing her new school supplies (by color, of course). Annie couldn’t help but blush whenever Han Solo was on screen. None of the others noticed. Abed was whispering every line to himself, Troy was engrossed in the film, and Britta kept asking Abed questions and cheering on the rebels even though she didn’t quite get why they were rebelling. Annie sat there, reveling in her closeness to Abed and enjoying his voice. This was the last day before they all went back to normal. She had been praying for this day all summer and dreading it simultaneously. Now it was here, she was both elated and mourning.

When the third film came to an end around midnight, Troy and Britta got up, each heading to their respective beds, despite knowing they’d end up in the same room in just a few minutes, as always. Their absence left Annie alone with Abed. She leaned back to look at Abed’s upside down face as he watched the credits roll, completely expressionless. She gathered her supplies, sighed and got up, looking back at Abed again. His face wasn’t quite emotionless now, but rather uncertain.

“What’s wrong, Abed?”

“Nothing,” he said as he quickly stood, unbalancing her so she fell into him and they both collapsed back onto the chair, their faces mere inches apart. She felt as though her body temperature was skyrocketing and her heart was pounding so hard she was sure Britta could hear it. She was about to throw caution to the wind and just kiss him, but Troy came out of the blanket fort. He looked at them with surprise for a moment until Abed spoke again. “Sorry for knocking you over.” Annie just squeaked and got up off the couch, heading for her room before they could notice her reddened cheeks. As she closed the door, she called out a quick goodnight.

⁂

  
Abed sat in his bed, not daring to go to sleep. He knew he’d dream about her. The way she’d literally fallen into his lap, the way she’d looked into his eyes, then down to his mouth as she licked her own lips, the almost hungry look in her eyes before Troy interrupted, and the blossoming red of her cheeks as she nearly sprinted away. He instead tried to focus on the simulations of their potential romance. How they would start wonderfully, until they told the study group and Jeff realized his affection for her and swept her off her feet and out of Abed’s arms. Or until she realized that their goals in life were incompatible and she grew to resent him. Or until she realized she wasn’t really attracted to him, but his characters. He had considered just playing a character for the rest of his life, but he realized that would only lead to frustration and depression over knowing his love didn’t love him, but his mask. No, they could never be. It could only end in tragedy. He’d finally convinced himself that he could sleep without dreaming of her when his alarm went off. It was already 8:00 am.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to assuage any potential concerns, Dariusz' name is not misspelled. It is a Polish name (pronounced DA-ryoosh), my intent being that he was named by his and Abed's mother.
> 
> While I posted these two chapters simultaneously, I intend to post future chapters on a weekly basis.

–Chapter Two–

_**A Surprise Visit** _

On the morning of the first day, the four roommates were in high spirits. They couldn’t wait to be reunited with the three remaining members of the Greendale Seven, and they had rushed out of the apartment by 8:30, crammed into Britta’s car, and drove to Greendale. Little did they know how different their fourth year would be. As they reached the entrance to the library, Annie noticed something odd. Abed was standing next to her–she turned to look at him, to make sure she remembered correctly–but Abed also stood at the entrance to the library, in an immaculately tailored three-piece suit, chatting animatedly to a redhead who was blushing and playing with her hair, clearly hanging on his every word. Annie looked at Abed again and saw his eyes had gone wide.

“Whoa, Abed! You never told me you had a clone! Cool!” Troy said, punching Abed’s arm. He’d stopped walking completely. Annie noticed the Abed in a suit taking a piece of paper from the girl and pocketing it, before turning and smiling even more broadly when he laid eyes on Abed.

“Abed! How’ve you been?” He nearly shouted as he pulled Abed into an embrace. Abed was stock still, not responding to the hug.

“What are you doing here?” Abed asked, an unfamiliar sharpness to his tone. Annie’s brow furrowed. Who was this that Abed seemed to dislike? The man released Abed and began to shake the others’ hands and introducing himself. He eventually came to her and a smile crept across his face. “You must be Annie,” he said, and instead of shaking her hand, he took it and raised it to his lips in a kiss. “Just as enchanting as described.” Annie couldn’t help but blush at this man, who looked almost exactly like Abed, reacting to her with the attraction she’d wished for Abed to display all summer. “Dariusz Nadir, Abed’s brother.”

“You still haven’t answered me,” Abed said, a slight sneer on his face. Annie’s heart leapt. Was he jealous? No, of course not. She reminded herself that he’d seemed to dislike his brother even before he’d come on to Annie.

“Oh, I’m going here now. Wharton had me expelled for selling test answers at Penn. It’s outrageous. I wasn’t even selling answers for tests at Wharton! But hey, c’est la vie. Now I’m here.” Just as he finished, Jeff, Shirley, and Pierce walked up to them, and he introduced himself to all three, and asked if Pierce was related to Hawthorne wipes. Pierce naturally took an immediate liking to him. Annie noticed Jeff had a look of distrust, probably seeing him as a threat. Annie began to notice the differences between Abed and Dariusz. Wider jaw, more traditionally athletic build, slightly younger appearance, and bright green eyes; not to mention that his personality seemed to be the polar opposite of Abed’s. She also noticed that he kept glancing at her. He kept the discussion going, mostly with Shirley about business and Troy about Football, as they walked to the study room. When they sat, he took the empty chair next to her with a wink. He interjected with some stories from Wharton as they caught up about the summer. When the study group broke apart, so the members could go to their first classes at a quarter after ten, he waited until only he, Abed, and Annie were left in the room.

“Hey, Annie. I’m new here, you wouldn’t mind showing me around campus, helping me find my classes, would you? I don’t have class for another hour.”

Annie was about to say that she’d rather go study for her first class when Abed opened his mouth. “I’m sure Annie has better things to do, Dariusz,” Annie felt almost offended that he’d speak for her, as if he had the right. If he was jealous of Dariusz, he should’ve done something over the summer. She spoke with some force to her tone. “No, I don’t, Abed. I’d be glad to show your brother around.”

⁂

Abed looked at Annie with surprise. He'd thought she would study with him for their first classes. They had different classes, of course, but they always studied together before each other’s began. Then it hit him. She was attracted to his brother. He felt a small part of him break inside, that little portion still holding out hope. He had to fight hard to keep his face from falling. He just nodded and left the room, heading to the table in the Library’s upper floor they usually studied together at. He wouldn’t be able to study, he knew that, but he had nowhere else to go. He bumped into Jeff on the way.

“Abed, that guy’s your brother?” Abed nodded. “No offense, but your brother’s kind of a douche.” Abed cocked his head, confused. Jeff was insulting a person who was acting just like he had a few years ago. Then he realized Jeff’s character development must not have reached the point of self-recognition. Abed nodded in agreement with Jeff’s point. “Seriously, did you see how he was coming on to Annie? I know those tricks, I used to use them myself. Abed, please tell me he isn’t the type of guy to use her and disappear.”

“I would, but then I’d be lying to comfort you, Jeff. And I don’t think that’s what you want from me. Unfortunately, he’s exactly the type of person to do that. He’s basically you from before you were disbarred.” Jeff noticed that Abed’s face fell at the words. All the puzzle pieces clicked in his mind like the evidence in a case. The fact that Abed only ever showed emotion when talking to or about her, the way he occasionally caught Abed watching her with the same interest as his television, the abrupt invitation for her to live with him and Troy, every little hint and clue suddenly felt obvious. How hadn’t he seen it before? Abed was jealous of his brother. He wanted Annie. Jeff smiled to himself. It was about damn time. He’d noticed Annie’s attraction to Abed since the end of the group’s second paintball game. Then his mind caught up with Abed’s words. Is that really how Abed saw him? He considered it and realized Abed had a point. He really had been just like Dariusz–better looking, of course–but similar in behavior. Maybe he needed to take a look at his choices, try to be a better person. At the very least, he needed a scotch.

“You two are really different,” Jeff said, trying to take his mind off his identity crisis.

“He went with my mom when she left. We really only saw each other on Christmas and at Eid Al-Adha.” Jeff looked puzzled for a moment, as if he’d forgotten Abed was Muslim. They talked a bit about what it was like for Abed to have a brother he barely knew, and Jeff was suddenly glad he didn’t have a brother himself.

⁂

Annie was surprised. Had she really just agreed to a date with Abed’s brother? She’d only met him an hour ago, and she didn’t even like him much. She’d only agreed to show him around because Abed had been so inconsiderate in speaking for her. Though she did have to admit she found Dariusz attractive, and he was charming. He wasn’t Abed, but Abed clearly didn’t care enough to do anything. He was just acting like Jeff–not wanting to be with her, but not wanting her to be with anyone else either. She was done with those games, and sad to realize that Abed wasn’t above them like she’d thought. She would have to move on, and who better to do that with than a mixture of Jeff and Abed? Yes. She would go on this date, and she would enjoy it, and she would move on from Abed just like she’d moved on from Jeff, and Troy, and Vaughn.


	3. A Deal and A Dinner

–Chapter Three–

**_A Deal and A Dinner_ **

Abed walked through the back door of his father’s restaurant for his shift. His father had insisted that he work at least one day a week there to learn how to run the business in case his Film plans fell through. Abed had to keep a touch of resentment from his expression when he saw Dariusz in the back room, reclining and watching Bloomberg TV on the large screen. Dariusz never had to work in the restaurant. Dariusz was going to school for business, so he could work on wall street or run a corporation. _He_ didn’t need a fallback. Abed almost failed to notice that Dariusz was wearing an apron and hairnet. He cocked his head to the side just as his father walked in.

“Ah, Abed. Good,” he said, before rounding on his younger son and shouting in Arabic. “Dariusz, how many times must I tell you to get back to work making the baklava? We have customers waiting! I never thought you would be the disappointment in this family! Even your brother has a job, working for newspaper, and you sit around wasting time with your TV!” It did not escape Abed’s attention that his father was recycling some of his old anger at Abed’s TV obsession. Abed smiled inwardly. Dariusz shot him a glare and stormed back into the kitchen. “Abed, would you please go make more falafel? We have only one tray left, and Dariusz isn’t as good at making them as you.” Abed nodded and began to put on his own hairnet and apron.

He entered the kitchen and found Dariusz silently fuming as he cast aside another ruined sheet of phyllo dough. He looked up to see Abed. “What do you want?”

“Dad asked me to make falafel,” Abed said calmly as he began to gather ingredients.

“You never told me that Annie was so hot. I figured you liked her since you talked about her so much, but damn. No wonder.” Abed grit his teeth and tried to remain focused on making the falafel. “I think I’m gonna score with her. She practically jumped at my offer for a date. I reckon two, maybe three dates and I’ll have her bagged. Oh, and what’s the deal with that blonde? Brittney or something? She’s kinda hot too. You think she’d be easy or difficult?” Abed didn’t know if Dariusz was trying to make him angry or if he just didn’t realize he was. “Eh, doesn’t matter. I only hunt one at a time. Maybe I’ll do the blonde after I get Annie, maybe I’ll chase someone else. We’ll see.” Abed had all but stopped rolling the falafel, knowing he’d just ruin it with how angry he was.

“Dariusz, please, just leave Annie alone. She deserves better than being another one of your conquests. You’ll only hurt her.” Abed tried to speak calmly, but he could hear his voice cracking. Dariusz looked over at Abed and chuckled.

“Too late, man. I already asked her out. If you wanted her for yourself, you should’ve done something. Besides, it’ll only be some casual fun. She certainly seems like she could use some.” Abed’s fists were clenched. “But I’ll tell you what, Abed. Since we’re brothers, I’ll make you a deal.” He looked up, hopeful that Dariusz would leave Annie alone. “You finish this Baklava for me, and I’ll back off. No sex, just a date and I move on. Okay?” Abed washed his hands and strode over to Dariusz to take over without a word. His brother sauntered back to the break room to watch more TV. An hour later, he handed the Baklava to his father through the order window. His father looked at it and back at Abed.

“Dariusz did not make this. This is your Baklava, not his. Why?”

“He kept messing up. He was wasting the dough,” Abed replied in Arabic. His father just nodded acceptance.

“Tell him I am disappointed, Abed.”

Abed walked to the break room and opened the door. Dariusz was now on his laptop, looking at some sort of graphs and had a few dozen windows open.

“I did what you asked,” Abed said as calmly as he could. “Now leave Annie alone.”

“Sure. Whatever.”

⁂

“So, you went to Wharton?” Annie asked, as she played with her hair. She wanted to make her attraction obvious. She needed to just get over Abed, and this would do that for her.

“Yeah. I had a full ride with the Fencing team. It’s a great school. I miss it. I’ll probably transfer to Harvard or Yale next year. They’re always willing to take on fencers, even with my… history.”

“I was accepted at Yale,” Annie said with a frown, “Before I dropped out of high school. They rescinded the acceptance when I went into rehab.” Dariusz’ head jerked back, his fork stopping halfway to his mouth. He returned it to his plate, not breaking eye contact.

“You went to rehab? For what?” Annie’s face fell. This always happened. She’d be on a date with a cute guy, and as soon as she mentioned rehab, he’d recoil and flee. Her eyes dropped to her plate as her shoulders hunched.

“Adderall. I was addicted, and I had a nervous breakdown,” she didn’t know why she was telling him, why she always felt the need to bring it up on a date, but she couldn’t stop herself. “I was upset about Troy getting an award for _most likely to succeed_ , and I was hallucinating that everyone was secretly a robot, and I ran through a plate glass window.” Dariusz’ eyes were starting to return to normal. He gave what seemed like a nod of understanding.

“I, uh, I used to use Adderall too,” he said softly, a shallow sigh escaping his lips. “I get it. It helps a lot. I haven’t needed it in a while though. I never had any breakdowns like that, but I understand where you’re coming from. But you know, this is kind of morose, lets change the subject, eh?” Dariusz and Annie finished their meal, talking about lighter topics. He regaled her with tales of elderly business professors, fellow students ranging from child prodigies to the idiot sons of real estate magnates, and biweekly trips with his friends to Cipriani, an expensive bar and restaurant on Wall Street in New York City. She told him about her adventures with the Greendale Seven. As their evening came to a close, and they reached the door of apartment 303, he spoke.

“I enjoyed this, Annie. Let’s do it again sometime. How about next Tuesday, 6:30, at Franchione’s?” Annie thought back on the evening. She’d enjoyed it too, even if he wasn’t what she really wanted. She smiled and nodded. “Sure. Sounds good.”

“Alright,” he said with a smile, “but you’ll need a formal dress. They have a dress code.” As he walked away, she opened the door and entered the apartment. She shut the door, leaned against it, and sighed quietly. She didn’t notice Abed sitting on his chair in complete darkness. The TV was off, and she assumed he was asleep. She went to her room to rest for the next day of classes, a smile lingering on her face. None of it escaped Abed’s notice.


	4. Therapy and Self Medication

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for this chapter being a bit late; I was out of town for the holidays. I've already gotten about half of the next chapter written, and several of the later chapters' rough drafts are complete, so the schedule should return to normal with the next chapter. Thank you for reading.
> 
> Also, a warning: The third section of this chapter includes depictions of drug addiction and abuse. If you would rather not read said depictions, I have included a summary of the section's events in the endnote.

–Chapter Four–

_**Therapy and Self Medication** _

Britta and Annie sat across from each other at the café two blocks from their apartment. Britta wanted to talk about Annie’s new relationship, since that was what friends did, wasn't it? Even if they didn't particularly approve of their friend's newest partner? Yes, it was. She knew she _should_ have invited Shirley too, but she had a feeling Annie wouldn’t want to deal with her judgmental attitude just yet (neither did she,if she was honest.)

“So,” she began, trying to at least _sound_ supportive, “how was your date with Abed’s brother? By the way, good job finally dating someone I haven’t already slept with.” She tried to make the second part sound joking, and Annie’s small laugh seemed to show her success.

“It was… good,” Annie replied, and Britta was unsure what to make of her friend’s hesitation. “He asked me to go to Franchione’s next Tuesday.” Britta realized she seemed unsure about it, as if Annie were asking her whether she should go.

“Do you want to go with him? You seem hesitant.”

“Well, he seems nice, and I liked our date, but… I don’t know, there’s just something about it that doesn’t feel right.”

“Is it because he looks like Abed and you find it weird?” Britta asked with a chuckle, trying to bring some levity to the conversation to hide her lack of enthusiastic support. When Annie blushed instead of laughing, though, Britta narrowed her eyes.

 “Wait a second… Really? It is because he looks like Abed? Well, I guess it _would_ be a bit weird to date someone who looks like your friend, since you’re not into Abed…” Annie’s cheeks got redder and she cast her eyes down at her tea. “Oh. Oh! You are into Abed, aren’t you? It doesn’t feel wrong because it’s awkward, it feels wrong because you think you’re using his brother to fulfill your desire for Abed! That's called displacement. Hah, Therapized!” Britta realized too late that she’d shouted the last bit and everyone in the café was silent and glaring at her. She apologized meekly, and they all returned to what they were doing.

⁂

Abed and Jeff sat in the plush leather chairs of the cigar lounge, scotch in hand. Neither spoke for a while. Abed looked around, noting the dim lighting, mahogany paneled walls, the soft jazz music lending to a quiet atmosphere, and the dozen or so men scattered throughout the room discussing business in calm tones while they smoked. Jeff watched Abed, waiting for him to talk.

“Why did you invite me here, Jeff? I didn’t think you smoked.”

“How did things go with your brother? You said you knew a way to get him to back off of Annie. Did it work?” Abed understood now. Jeff was hoping Abed had succeeded in clearing the way for him with Annie, even though he probably would just keep rebuffing her. Jeff clearly wanted to keep Annie’s romantic focus without the ‘drawbacks’ of a relationship. Abed frowned and shook his head as he took another draw from his cigar.

“No. We had a deal that he’d back off after the first date, since it was already scheduled, but I heard him ask her on a second. He lied.” Abed heard Jeff muttering something about bad faith.

“I have an idea.” Jeff said after a moment of silence. Abed tilted his head quizzically. “L street.”

⁂

Dariusz finished shaving and folded his straight razor. He looked in the mirror again after wiping his face and noticed a small cut on his jaw. His hands had been shaking while he went over the spot and he could feel a headache coming on. He held the bridge of his nose, and with his free hand opened the mirror and grabbed the single pill bottle within. When he tipped the bottle to let a pill fall into his hand nothing happened. Seeing it was empty, he threw the bottle at the wall as he let loose a string of expletives under his breath, grabbing his nose again to fend off the budding headache. He searched his bedroom for any more pills he’d hidden away, but he found nothing. Resigned, he grabbed his phone to schedule an appointment.

Several hours–and Tylenols–later, he stepped through the door of his psychiatrist’s office. After greetings and other formalities were done, he tuned back in to the conversation and sat on the chair across from his doctor.

“I need a refill.”

“Well, Mr. Nadir, how has your comprehension and focus been since our last talk?” asked the doctor, a bespectacled man with a receding hairline.

“No real change. The pills help, mostly. I still have a bit of trouble with classes and work. Mostly work, but I think that’s because I hate my job.”

“I see; you work for your father, in his restaurant, yes? Any other developments? How is your social life?”

“Alright. I stick to myself mostly, since coming back here. I only really go out for dating, you know.”

“Yes, yes… The dating, do you find it stressful?”

“Nah, not really. It’s a lot easier here than it is back in Philadelphia. Everything’s cheaper here, and none of the local girls expect much. If anything, it’s less stressful here.”

“That is good. You mentioned that you ‘hate’ your work. What about it do you dislike?”

“Well, it’s working in a kitchen. So, everything? I have to spend hours of my day cooking shitty food for no pay, while I listen to my father go on all day about how I’m such a disappointment, how I should be more like my brother. My brother has fucking autism or something! Why should I be more like a guy who can’t even get up the nerve to ask out the girl he’s into? Though I guess I shouldn’t complain about that–she’s pretty hot, and she seems like the sort of sexually repressed that means she’ll be really good in bed–his loss is my gain, but still. A guy who has no idea how to connect with people and spends all his spare time watching fucking TV and bad movies? Why should I be like that?” Dariusz was fuming. The doctor just nodded while he wrote something on his clipboard and let out a terse _hmm_ before grabbing several pieces of paper from it and handing them to Dariusz.

“I would like you to fill out these forms while I go write your prescription. Please answer honestly and to the best of your ability; if you do not know or if a question does not apply to you, simply write not applicable. Thank you for your time, Mr. Nadir,” the doctor said as he opened the door and gestured for Dariusz to go to the waiting room. He went, then sat down and began to fill out the forms

An hour later, he found himself leaving the pharmacy down the street from his father’s restaurant, holding a bag with several bottles instead of the one he’d expected. He stood in the parking lot, reading the labels. His Adderall had been refilled–he immediately opened it and took one–and he also had a bottle of Celexa and one of Xanax. He shrugged and put them back in the bag. He could already feel his headache dissipating, though he figured the Adderall couldn’t be working so soon, it probably helped knowing he had it. As he got back to his car, however, he still felt he needed something extra. He reached over to his glovebox and pulled out a small vial of white powder. A quick bump before work couldn’t hurt; he was only working in a kitchen. He tapped out a small pile on the crook of his left thumb and brought it to his nose. Yeah. That would help with the headache, for sure. He returned the vial to its place in his glove box.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summary of the third section: Dariusz experiences the beginnings of Adderall withdrawal. He sets an appointment with his psychiatrist to get a refill of the pills, which succeeds, and also uses Cocaine to 'ease his headache'
> 
> Drug abuse is a serious condition, and as I have no personal experience with the condition other than family members' addictions (to Heroin, rather than Adderall and Cocaine) when I was a child, my depiction may not be perfect, but I have tried to depict it in a way which is neither vilifies addicts nor justifies their actions.


	5. Lost Memories and Surprise Guests

–Chapter Five–

_**Lost Memories and Surprise Guests** _

Abed opened his eyes, but as the morning light hit him, he felt as if someone was driving an axe into his head. He shut them again and began to take stock of his condition. Headache, dry throat, thirst, heartburn. He was hungover. He turned over so that he was facing away from the window and opened his eyes again. He reached over to his bedside table to grab his Ray Bans, then got up to put on his clothing from the night before. He realized that he had been undressed. Not in his pajamas as usual, but undressed down to his underwear. He opened the ‘door’ to the blanket fort, and was surprised to see Annie in the kitchen, talking to another brunette, who was wearing one of his shirts. He tilted his head, trying to remember the night before.

⁂

_“I have an idea.” Jeff said after a moment of silence. Abed tilted his head quizzically. “L street.”_

_Ten minutes later, Abed and Jeff approached the red door of the bar, but before he opened it, Jeff motioned for Abed to stop._

_“Abed, you’re getting laid. Be Don Draper or something. I’ll wing-man you if I have to, but I’d rather focus on scoring myself, since I know you can be charming when you try. Okay?”_

_It had been a while since they arrived at the bar, and Jeff was ordering another round of shots for Himself, Abed, and the two women they were talking to. Was it the third or fourth now? Abed wasn’t sure. He looked back at the girl who was next to him. She looked familiar, like the girl from... that one movie. He couldn’t remember the name of the actress… or the film. That, of course, meant he was drunk. He took the shot anyway. It was the last thing he remembered of that night._

⁂

Annie woke up at 7:30 sharp, as always. She grabbed her towel and her outfit for the day, which she’d laid out the night before. She and Britta had stayed out a bit later than she normally would, and Abed hadn’t been in the living room when she got back. She opened the door to her room and was about to head over to the bathroom for her shower when she heard it already running. That was odd. Abed and Troy never woke up before eight–much to her chagrin, as they had to leave at 8:30 to meet the study group at nine–and it was the weekend, so Britta would sleep in until at least noon. The water shut off, and Annie realized she’d been standing in the door to her bedroom, staring at the bathroom for at least five minutes. She started to walk over to the room to knock and see which of her roommates it was, but just as her knuckle was about to hit the door, it swung open. A brunette wrapped in one of Annie’s towels jumped at the sight of her.

“Oh, hello. Sorry, who are you?”

“I’m Annie. I live here.” The woman’s eyes widened slightly before she nodded.

“Nice to meet you, Annie. I’m Amber. I uh, I…” she looked down at the towel wrapped around her. “I’m so sorry! He didn’t say he had a girlfriend, and I assumed since he slept in a bunk-bed he just had roommates or something, and…”

“I’m not Abed’s girlfriend!” Annie shout-whispered quickly after her shock had worn off. The woman, Amber looked surprised for a second, then relieved.

“I’m just going to, uh, let you shower, I guess. I’ll make breakfast… are pancakes okay?” Amber asked as she slipped past Annie into the living room. Annie just nodded, afraid to open her mouth for fear of blurting out that she _wanted_ to be Abed’s girlfriend. Especially since Britta had just convinced her to tell Abed how she felt. But if Abed was going out and sleeping with other women–which she’d never seen Abed do before–he clearly didn’t feel the same way about her. Besides, telling Abed’s paramour about her desire for her roommate would probably be oversharing a bit. And if Abed didn’t feel the same way about her, then she’d just have to get over him. She broke out of her thoughts as she turned on the water of the shower, trying to focus on cleaning herself rather than Abed, or how much the water felt like orange paint. She did not succeed.

⁂

Abed walked over to the kitchen, trying to ignore the awkwardness of seeing the girl he might be in love with talking to a girl he might have slept with, and started making a pot of coffee.

“So, Annie,” the brunette said amiably, “you said you’re a healthcare administration major? What made you want to go into medicine? Oh, pancakes are done. Two or three?”

“Two, please. I just saw how awful the medical system is when we put my Bubbe in a nursing home.”

“You’re Jewish?” the girl asked, smiling when Annie affirmed it. “Me too! What Beyt Knesset do you go to?”

Abed refocused on the coffee, successfully tuning them out.


End file.
